[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 160 (2014), Part 4]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 5361]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                 TRIBUTE TO THE HONORABLE GLORIA MOLINA

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. LUCILLE ROYBAL-ALLARD

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, April 1, 2014

  Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Gloria Molina, 
who is retiring at the end of this year, after an impressive 40-year 
career as a public servant in the State of California.
  On the occasion of Ms. Molina's retirement from public office, we 
wish to extend to her sincere congratulations for the decades of 
dedicated service that she has given to her nation, her State, her 
City, and her County, most recently as member of the County of Los 
Angeles Board of Supervisors, where she has served with distinction as 
the First Supervisorial District Supervisor since 1991.
  Through the Chicano Power Movement, the Women's Movement, and the 
national movement against the Vietnam War during the 1960s and 1970s, 
Ms. Molina's interest was awakened to civic affairs. She was the first 
chief deputy for California State Assemblyman Art Torres in 1974 and 
later for the renowned California State Assembly Speaker Willie Brown. 
Ms. Molina also served in the Carter White House as well as the San 
Francisco Department of Health and Human Services.
  Ms. Molina was first elected to the Los Angeles County Board of 
Supervisors in 1991, the first Latina ever elected to the Board, 
representing the First District, where she is currently serving her 
fifth term. During this time, she also has served five times as Chair 
of the Board. Ms. Molina's tenure has produced dramatic results both 
because she has insisted that County services be streamlined for 
maximum effectiveness and because she has brought to fruition major 
capital endeavors that improve County residents' quality-of-life.
  Prior to representing the First Supervisorial District, Ms. Molina 
was elected to the California State Assembly in 1982 and the Los 
Angeles City Council in 1987. Both times, she was the first Latina to 
earn this honor. Her triumphant leadership in the 1980s against the 
construction of a state prison in East Los Angeles is legendary, and it 
solidified her reputation--whether functioning on a local or a national 
level--as both a fighter and groundbreaker able to achieve victory 
despite seemingly insurmountable odds.
  Named as one of the Democratic Party's ``10 Rising Stars'' by TIME 
magazine in 1996, Ms. Molina served as one of four vice chairs of the 
Democratic National Committee (DNC) from 1996 through 2004. During the 
2000 Presidential Election, Ms. Molina was one of 15 top women leaders 
nationwide to be named as a possible vice-presidential candidate by the 
White House Project--a non-profit, non-partisan group dedicated to 
raising awareness of women's leadership in American politics.
  On behalf of the U.S. House of Representatives, the State of 
California, and the County of Los Angeles, I want to thank Gloria 
Molina for sharing her tremendous talents with us for so many years. We 
extend our gratitude to her for her remarkable contributions in public 
service throughout her illustrious career. With sincere best wishes, we 
congratulate Ms. Molina upon her retirement from elective office. We 
are pleased to join her many co-workers, family, friends, and 
associates in wishing her health, happiness, and continued good fortune 
in her future endeavors.

                          ____________________